Following on the heels of the US Embassy in Beirut urging all American citizens out of Lebanon on Thursday, the US State Department has issued a "worldwide caution alert" for all US national traveling abroad, related to the war in Gaza.
The new alert cites the "potential for terrorist attacks, demonstrations or violent actions against U.S. citizens and interests," and calls on Americans overseas to exercise increased caution.
The earlier updated travel alert for Lebanon had described "the unpredictable security situation related to rocket, missile and artillery exchanges between Israel and Hezbollah or other armed militant factions."
The US government has further directed all Americans seeking to depart Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza as well to immediately fill out a "crisis intake form".
There have been continuing protests and clashes with police by anti-Israel demonstrators in the neighborhood of the Beirut suburb where the US embassy is located. In Lebanon's south, exchanges of fire are growing between Hezbollah and the Israeli Army, with Friday reports of Hezbollah having launched multiple guided missiles.
As we've detailed before, major unrest and protests have popped up across the region, and into North Africa, and even Europe. The new US State Department advisory appears in response to growing anti-American sentiment due to Washington's staunch support to Israel, which has involved billions in aid and military equipment and ammunition transfers.
Meanwhile, CNN has produced the following alarming headline on Friday: The US is dangerously close to being pulled into a Middle East war. The report reviews of the past 48 hours of rapidly moving events:
A US navy ship intercepts missiles launched by Houthi rebels in Yemen. Two American bases in Syria come under fire. In Iraq, drones and rockets fired at US forces.
Gaza may be where the war is happening now, but across the Middle East the warning lights of more trouble to come are blinking red.
The US has deployed two carrier groups to the eastern Mediterranean to deter Iran and its allies Syria and Hezbollah from opening new fronts against Israel. Two thousand US Marines are on hard standby for deployment to the region.
A lot will be determined by whether or not a full-fledged war opens with Hezbollah on Israel's northern border. If it does, it becomes increasingly likely that the US would jump in both against Hezbollah and possibly the Syrian Army, which cooperates closely with Iranian groups.
Anger grows against US media correspondents & teams in the region as well...
This young Egyptian woman, confronts @cnn’s @clarissaward and speaks for so many of us, expressing her frustration and rage as this main stream media outlets continue to pedal Israeli propaganda and obfuscate the reality of what is happening.
— AHMED | أحمد (@ASE) October 20, 2023
This is ethnic cleansing in broad… pic.twitter.com/EXClDT1wei
Additionally, the moment it becomes clear that Israel's expected ground invasion of Gaza goes into full effect, there will likely be retaliation by outside groups, Hezbollah among them. On Thursday it was widely reported that a US warship off Yemen's coast intercepted north-bound rockets fired by Iran-backed Yemeni Houthis. Israeli officials believe the missiles were meant to target Israel.
